A radio station in Portland, Oregon, announced Tuesday that it will broadcast a cloned voice of its midday host generated by an artificial intelligence (AI)-powered tool. The station will reportedly use "RadioGPT," to create a script based on trending news and reads it with a synthetic voice.  

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This picture shows a radio microphone as French radio host Simon Reungoat leads a show in the background, at French regional radio Hit West, owned by French newspaper group Ouest-France, at the headquarters in Nantes, western France, on January 19, 2021.

World's First AI DJ

Oregon-based Live 95.5 is making history as the world's first radio station with an AI DJ that will air daily from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. According to TechCrunch, the station cloned the voice of its midday host Ashley Elzinga to develop "AI Ashley" as her alternative.

The radio station will use Futuri Media's "RadioGPT," which utilizes GPT-4 to generate a script. In a statement, Elzinga said she is ecstatic to be one of the pioneers in her company to build an innovative and unique listening experience for their audience.

She added: "We have been working hard to ensure AI Ashley is just as live, local, engaging, and entertaining as the traditional version, and I can't wait for our fans to hear both versions of Ashley in action."

While listeners may be worried that radio AI personalities may sound robotic-sounding, Live 95.5 made sure to train the AI to sound like the existing host that the audience may connect with.

The company also assured that AI Ashley would not replace Elzinga. Live 95.5's parent company, Alpha Media, said Elzinga would not be losing her job and she would still get the same salary.

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Oregon-Based Radio Station's Transparency

As seen and heard in Live 95.5's tweet, the AI's voice is similar to Ashley Elzinga's actual voice, but it is still obvious that it is AI. The Desk reported that the AI DJ introduced itself as "AI Ashley," so listeners knew it was an AI talking, not a human.

Phil Becker, Alpha Media EVP of Content, said that the most important part of this effort is that the station is transparent to the listeners as they never intend to deceive anybody. 

Axios reported that RadioGPT uses Futuri's TopicPulse technology to scan online news sources and social media to present interesting topics and trends in the local market. Through this AI-powered tool that uses GPT-4, RadioGPT could transform the broadcast industry.

Potential Job Cuts Due to AI

Developing an AI version of an existing DJ has been a huge concern for many local DJs. Several radio stations have cut down their broadcasts in recent years because of rising costs or a shift to technology like AI.

But Becker told TechCrunch is not using RadioGPT to replace the station's hosts to save costs but rather to use it as an efficient tool for hosts to have in their toolset.

Becker said, "It's a hybrid situation where we'll have traditional Ashley on during some segments, and we'll have AI Ashley on during other segments." 

In an instance where AI Ashley would be broadcasting, Becker noted that the real Ashley could do something else that comes with the job, like helping in the community, "managing social posts, or working on digital assets."

Related Article: RadioGPT, World's First AI-Driven Radio Station, Launches: Here's How it Works